Barry Baker

Loves journalism, is not a journalist. Loves politics, is not a politician. Loves the media, is not a medium. Barry is committed to helping the world become a more interesting place with Power of Opinion.

35 posts categorized "Media"

February 26, 2008

Well, the needle has finally moved on Angus Reid's advertisement, or poll, or whatever the heck it is that asks Kamloops residents to rate the performance of Kamloops mayor Terry Lake.

Those of you who who visited this space back in December may recall a
thread of discussion about these... OK, let's call them adverpolls for lack of a better word. They're everywhere; Angus Reid Forum uses them to generate interest and new participants in its market research initiatives. When I posted about the adverpoll - which at the time was reporting a 60/40 split against Mayor Lake - the mayor responded that in fact the adverpoll had reported the same result for at least 6 months, despite the best efforts of his supporters.

So, the results of this Angus Reid adverpoll have finally changed, although certainly not in the mayor's fortune, but instead rather decidedly and improbably against Mr. Lake.

As you can see from before two images below, the first image shows the adverpoll's question, while the second image shows the current result.

Despite the flack the mayor has received regarding back yard barbeques and whatnot, is it really possible that 100% of "a selection of website visitors who voluntarily answered the question" voted against the mayor? Granted, the disclaimer indicates it is an "unscientific poll", but still, if at one point it showed 40% in favour, how can it now indicate just 0% in favour? What happened to those "Yes" votes that had been counted to December?

Insofar as Angus Reid Forum adverpolls are interactive, they are excellent advertising; the local poll certainly hooked me right away. Given the extent to which Angus Reid Forum has reproduced them in other communities across Canada, I suspect they have been a very effective draw that have helped the company grow its market research efforts.

However, as Kamloops This Week Editor Christopher Foulds commented in December, "... the 'Terry Lake' question is not a poll". That may be, but to this unassuming participant it looks like a poll despite the "unscientific poll" disclaimer, which in essence seems more like industry shorthand for doing pretty well whatever one wants, and still
calling the thing a poll.

Public Agenda publishes a guideline for journalists to help them determine which polls should be covered; the very first question a journalist should ask is, "Who did the poll?... because reputation is important to a quality firm, a professionally conducted poll will avoid many errors." Now, the average online Canadian may not read guidance intended for journalists, but it's not rocket science that a good reputation lends credibility. I question whether lending one's credibility to a campaign that creates more confusion, misinformation, or disinformation in the arena of political polling is an undertaking in which Angus Reid should be engaged.

Since we last visited this issue in December, the polling firm has changed the adverpoll disclaimer, having dropped the last sentence, "For scientific polls conducted by Angus Reid Strategies, visit www.angusreidstrategies.com". So, given that Angus Reid has already demonstrated some flexibility might I suggest that the disclaimer again be further amended to include language that unambiguously indicates the "unscientific poll" is actually an advertisement?

Disclaimers are commonly used when an advertisement could be mistaken for something else. Consider infomercials, upon which we often see a disclaimer to the effect of, "the following program is a paid advertisement". The infomercial analogy isn't perfect, as the broadcaster may require disclaimer language, while the Internet is really more like the lawless wild west. But still, shouldn't we expect the straight goods from Angus Reid?

Try the poll yourself, here. What do you think? To share your thoughts about advertising, adverpolls, gullible bloggers, the Terry Lake poll specifically, or polling generally with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, click on "Comments" (below).

February 11, 2008

If bloggers crave attention, Daily News editor Mel Rothenburger dished up a round on the house this past Saturday with his Armchair Mayor column, in which he provided readers with an introduction to, and brief assessment of, the Kamloops blogging scene. The column, Beware mainstream media: the bloggers are here provides a timely counterpoint to my own recent examinations of Kamloops' major media web properties.

<<< OK, if you made it through that last sentence without snickering, go back and read it again to the tune of Carly Simon's You're So Vain. >>>

The former Kamloops mayor gave top marks to media professionals who blog, a number of whom are employed by his newspaper. Amateur bloggers (including yours truly) received a little more scrutiny, which oddly enough is exactly the thing that many amateur bloggers both desire and fear.

For the most part Mr. Rothenburger is right on the money about blogger sensitivity; discussions about real and perceived slights can often take on a life of their own. Case in point is the story about the Tournament Capital Centre's basketball hoops over at www.KamloopsInsideOut.ca, and the subsequent coverage of the same story in the Daily News. When one considers the parallel discussions of the issue at ProBlogger.net and WritingForward.com, the combined thread now includes more than 80 posts and comments!

While Mr. Rothenburger stops at referring to the lot of us bloggers as, "sensitive" and "self-absorbed", others aren't nearly so restrained in their criticism. Author, broadcaster, and silicon value entrepreneur Andrew Keen, for example, wrote the book on us. In Cult of the Amateur: How today's Internet is killing our culture, Mr. Keen argues that, “what the Web 2.0 revolution is really delivering is superficial observations of the world around us rather than deep analysis, shrill opinion rather than considered judgment.” Damn... if it hadn't been for Mr. Keen and his big mouth, we would have pinned the death of culture on that guy who makes antler lamps years ago!

Anyways, all this online dialogue is something that newspapers can and should be putting to good use. Some Canadian and US newspapers are responding to the blogging phenomenon by selecting amateur political commentary posted on their own newspaper web sites, and incorporating it into ongoing election coverage. Why? Well, because a lot of people are opinionated and self-absorbed!

By selecting and printing just a single column-inch of amateur commentary per day, these newspapers attract repeated online visits by more people who hope to see their own names and opinions in print. And by growing the reader/writer relationship from two dimensions on paper into something that includes an intimate and interactive online experience, newspapers have an opportunity to convert dwindling print subscribers into committed online participants. And of course, more eyeball$ for advertisers.

So, in counter-counterpoint Mr. Rothenburger, mainstream media needn't beware the blogger. Rather, if you don't mind shouldering some of the responsibility for the death of culture, instead consider becoming one with the blogger. Ommmmm...

P.S. - To Mr. Rothenburger's point about my run-on Blog Disclaimer and Comments Policy, in retrospect I did incorporate pretty well everything I could think of or copy that might C.M.A. (a not-so-insignificant task in Canada), other than of course the option of keeping my mouth closed. While it may not be the most elegant, sound, or effective blog policy around, at almost 500 words surely it must be one of the longest!

To share your thoughts about free speech, blogging, antler lamps, the media, or the death of culture with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops
readers, click on "Comments" (below).

February 07, 2008

1. Bolero Restaurant: I was lucky this trip to get away from the hotel Wednesday evening for a dinner meeting. My guest was local, and suggested we dine at Bolero, the Brazilian churrascaria (or barbecue) restaurant above the Smuggler's Inn on MacLeod Trail, which was in December named by Where Magazine as one of the Top 10 New restaurants in Canada for 2007. The food was excellent. The rodizio format meant we paid one flat fee while helping ourselves to a wide variety of rotisserie meats which the wait staff circulated throughout the restaurant, slicing off portions from large skewers for those with a green light on their table; once you get stuffed, you flip it over to the red light. The fair ranged from coconut rice and and superlative salad bar to rack of lamb, chicken, beef, seafood, and pork on skewers. Overall rating: good enough to bring home a souvenir menu.

2. David Suzuki caused quite a stir in Calgary when he suggested to a Montreal audience recently that politicians should be imprisoned for the "intergenerational crime" of ignoring climate change science. Mr. Suzuki challenged attendees of the McGill Business Conference on Sustainability to, "put a lot of effort into trying to see whether there's a legal way of throwing our so-called leaders into jail because what they're doing is a criminal act."

Mr. Suzuki's repeats his claims of "intergenerational crime" here on his web site. So, we the electorate elect leaders who reflect our collective will, and like us many of those leaders in practice demonstrate a preference for economy over the environment, wealth over conservation, and words over action. And somehow the politicians should be imprisoned for reflecting our own hypocrisy? Nice grandstanding Mr. Suzuki, but our prison system is a few million beds shy of the capacity necessary to house the rest of us who are complicit in these "crimes".

3. The provincial writ has just been dropped in Alberta, but the battle is already heating up on Facebook, where the NDP out in front with social networking campaign with which the party hopes to influence undecided voters. What I find fascinating about this is that many people include professional colleagues as "friends" on their social networking profiles; does this mean that politics is coming out of the closet as a topic of discussion in the workplace? So much for Canadian sensibilities about such taboo subject matter; before you know it, we'll be talking about religion in mixed company!

PS - Watch for organized Facebook campaigns in the BC municipal elections coming to your town this fall!

To share your thoughts about Alberta politics, Calgary restaurants, David Suzuki, or environmental hypocrisy with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, click on "Comments" (below).

January 26, 2008

In this continuing series of posts about online media properties in Kamloops, today's installment provides an assessment and comparison of local newspaper web sites.

As with the television assessment (posted here), the small number of major newspapers in Kamloops made a straight-up comparison difficult. As a result, I
also evaluated the web site of the Prince George Citizen. The Internet is a pretty dynamic place, so I expect that some of the things described below may be obsolete in short order, however as of today this information is as accurate as I can make it.

Not surprisingly, what I found is that two of the three newspaper web sites reviewed - Kamloops This Week and Prince George Citizen - did in fact present a much more compelling experience than the broadcaster web sites based in Kamloops. The web site for the Kamloops Daily News meanwhile, appears to be about even with local broadcaster web sites. The most fascinating aspect of the Kamloops News site is that it publishes web traffic statistics, which indicate that the site draws about 5,000 unique visitors per day and about 50,000 unique visitors per month. The busiest time of day is between 3:00 and 3:30 in the afternoon. Most of the traffic is coming from search engines, but while this means the site is drawing in many new visitors it also indicates that page views (and ad views, hence revenues) would likely be much higher if the paper implemented a strategy to draw visitors back to the site on a regular and direct basis rather than simply relying upon ad hoc search engine referrals.

Kamloops This Week

KTW executed a wholesale change to its web site a several months back,
which has now pulled its independent site (www.kamloopsthisweek.com) under
Black Press' unified
www.bclocalnews.com property. The new site is very clean, elegant, and easy to navigate. Using a common web domain also means that more eyeballs come to the single site (representing, for example, visitors from every community served by every Black Press newspaper publication in BC), and so it receives a *lot* of visitors and page views, which in turn are very attractive to advertisers (read: more revenue).

I do miss the strong just-Kamloops local flavour of the old site. However, the new site now functions as a gateway - not just to national and international news, as is often the case with newspaper chain web sites - but rather as a gateway to the smaller stories that occur in the many medium-to-small communities Black Press services. I find this very attractive; there are few things more interesting to me than the tiny ultra-local stories that typically only get airtime within a specific community. Black Press' www.bclocalnews.com web site now airs all those stories out to the entire distribution network. Facinating.

Both the old and new web sites delivered some manner of breaking stories (i.e. stories that have not yet appeared in the newspaper, may evolve before they are published, or may simply never actually appear in the newspaper itself). The first time I saw this was during summer 2007 when Kamloops This Week published minutes-old breaking news of the Kamloops Blazer General Meeting (at which the club was sold) online; I read it from Salmon Arm while on vacation there.

The newspaper is integrating its on- and off-line news strategies, as has been made evident by stories in the newspaper, which occasionally include an "On The Web" ad that directs readers to "Go online to www.kamloopsthisweek.com for more information... ". Leveraging the web site this way makes a lot of sense, as there are no space limitations on the web (meaning one can publish a veritable never-ending story, kind of like this post) online whereas the print version is constrained by the physical dimensions of the pages, but also because readers who do go online might see completely different advertisements there, meaning the publisher can maximize the revenue potential of a single story.

The web site includes an impressive array of online photo galleries (Dave Eagles), all available for purchase as framed or unframed hard copies.

Integrated with other Black Press properties/networks for careers, automotive, etc.Is currently utilizing ads from both Yahoo Google ad networks; I suspect the intent here may be a side-by-side test to determine which service generates the most click-thrus, and hence, the most revenue for the site

In a related feature, the www.bclocalnews.com web site also features blogs written by Black Press staff, including this post by Editor Bill Phillips of the Prince George Free Press
in which he discusses how that paper now reports news as it happens, including video on the web site, rather than simply focusing on print distribution.

Black Press is obviously growing capacity and skills within its New Media division, given recent advertisements for a variety of online and "New Media" positions including Regional Online Consultant, On-line Producer, etc.

I will credit Kamloops This Week for the initiative shown by two of its most visible personalities - Dale Bass and Christopher Foulds - each of whom run blogs at http://dalebass.blogspot.com and http://chrisfoulds.blogspot.com respectively. The blogs contribute to their employer's overall web presence in a variety of ways, including:

The blogging process helps both of writers personally acquire know-how about the online community from the perspectives of both of consumers and publishers. This is a good thing, as I believe that there is opportunity for traditional media outlets to leverage and exploit the activities of bloggers and other online citizens to drive more eyeballs (and hence more revenue) toward their own media organizations.

Blogs are often perceived to be much more personal and interactive than commercial media web sites, so these blogs promote more buy-in from readers who might not otherwise develop similar emotional connections to the personalities and columns when they appear in the newspaper.

Prince George Citizen

Blogging service for readers - important because it may keep novices from starting their own (competitive) blog, but also encourages bloggers of all stripes to post their own comments, including links
back to their own blogs

Photo galleries back to November 2006, includes viewing stats and viewer votes, ability to purchases

Not all newspaper stories are published online, although online content subscriptions are being considered for the future. Not all online stories are published in newspaper.

Is now incorporating video reports into some stories, which is significantly blurring the line between this newspaper enterprise broadcast media. In fact, both the Prince George Citizen and the Prince George Free Press (a Black Press publication, as above) have begun to deliver video news on their web sites, so PG is apparently leading the way within the BC Interior towards an increasingly popular and rewarding media convergence.

Kamloops Daily News

The Prince George Citizen (which has been included in this comparison) is one of the Kamloops Daily News' sister web sites, and it appears that the Citizen's Internet department is also hosting at least a portion of the Daily News' web site. This is a positive for the Kamloops Daily News, as itsuggest to me that the Kamloops Daily News may adopt a cookie-cutter copy of the Citizen's web site at some point. This would allow the Daily News to fast forward towards a more competitive online presence, as the Prince George Citizen has a lot of great content and great features. Unfortunately the visual presentation of the Citizen's web site somewhat overwhelming; a little design simplicity would go a long way to streamlining the user experience, encouraging longer visits, and consequently increasing the page views, ad views and revenues.

It is interesting to see that The News has also incorporated a Fundata investment fund search and reporting feature. Fundata is 50% owned by Kamloops Daily News parent company, Glacier Ventures.

Here again, I will credit the Kamloops Daily News for a blog written by one of that paper's senior staff members - Sports Editor Greg Drinnan - who publishes his Taking Note sports blog at http://gdrinnan.blogspot.com. Mr. Drinnan also publishes traffic statistics on his blog; the metrics used are a little different between the two sites, but if I am accurately drawing a parallel between between "page views" and "Visits incl. Reloads", these stats indicate he is drawing nearly 1/4 as much traffic as the main Kamloops Daily News web site.

January 18, 2008

As the first month of 2008 unfolds here in Kamloops, the city remains transfixed by the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association scandal in which underage players partied at the home of association President Stan Burton, and the parent who brought the matter to the press was suspended by the association executive.

Meanwhile, at about the same time two years ago, the people of Kelowna were not only transfixed but were also mobilizing to change the president and executive of Kelowna Minor Hockey after they suspended a parent and her hockey-playing son for speaking out.

In that case hockey mom Wendy Wahler wrote a letter to the editor of Castanet.net, an online Kelowna media property. The letter expressed her frustration that both Kelowna Mayor Sharon Sheperd and Kelowna Minor Hockey President Mike Dalton failed to attend the organization's 27th annual Tim Hortons Major Midget Hockey Tournament. KMH president Mike Dalton then suspended both Ms. Wahler (for a year) and her 17-year-old son - who was captain of the Midget AA Junior Rockets - even though the boy had not offered any criticism himself.

Prior to the meeting President Mike Dalton resigned. But on February 21 2006, a vote to dissolve the association's executive was held. Despite the massive turnout, and a majority who voted in favour of the motion, the motion was defeated. Still, the damage had been done; when the smoke cleared the following May at the annual general meeting, Kelowna Minor Hockey had a new president and an executive with mostly of fresh faces.

Here in Kamloops, despite all the searches for information and letters to the editor, there is no similar petition circulating, and Kamloops Minor
Hockey Association members seem disinclined to rock the boat despite Stan Burton's egregious lack of judgement, whereas in Kelowna all Mike Dalton did was play hooky and go skiing. Go figure.

I've been told that far from mobilizing, many KMHA parents are actually sharing less criticism of the organization than usual, lest they or their children incur some future retribution. In Kamloops the status quo remains firmly in effect; Stan Burton and the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association executive have nothing to worry about.

To share your thoughts about the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association,
problems in amateur sport, the status quo, or any other aspect of this
issue with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, click on "Comments" (below).

January 13, 2008

Based upon the continuing appearance of letters to local newspaper editors, it appears that interest in the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association youth drinking scandal has failed to dissipate over the holidays. In fact, Kamloops Daily News City Editor Susan Duncan addressed the issue for the first time in Friday's On The Run column, published here. That so many in Kamloops refused to let the issue die over the holidays speaks to the depth of frustration and unease with the KMHA's handling of the affair.

This isn't just a matter of a few hotheads who won't give the issue up. Rather, it confirms something I've observed online since first posting about the issue back in December; people are looking for information about the scandal in large numbers.

One interesting aspect of publishing online is that one can monitor the visitor traffic to one's web site. Now, for the most part the level of detail to which I have access isn't very fine. However, it is very specific in one respect; search strings.

A significant portion of the visitors who arrive at this site do so after finding it on a search engine like Google, Yahoo,MSN. When the person conducting the search is redirected here, the search engine also sends me the list of words for which they were searching. As you can imagine, online publishers who care to review this data can develop a pretty good understanding of what interests their readers.

What I have learned since December is that readers of this blog are continuing to search for information about the underage drinking party at the home of Kamloops Minor Hockey Association (KMHA) President Stan Burton, the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association, minor hockey in Kamloops, Ladd and Monica Maloski, and a variety of other terms that are related to this sad saga.

In addition to observing visitor traffic, I have also received emails from concerned citizens - some of whom are leaders in the Kamloops sporting community - who express dismay at the apparent lack of respect for essential KMHA principles, such as;

EXPECTATIONS OF EXECUTIVE MEMBERSAn Executive Member of Kamloops Minor Hockey is an Executive Member first, parent and spectator second... Conduct shall be considered to be under scrutiny at all times and therefore above reproach.

and,

EXPECTATIONS OF COACHES AND TEAM OFFICIALSThose individuals accepting the position of coach do so knowing that they become the most important individual to the team. By leadership the coach establishes a model that players will use to mould a significant portion of their attitude toward the game. This facet is especially true in minor hockey where players are in the formative years of their life.

Following are a few points that Team Officials must keep in mind:...8) The illegal use of alcohol or drugs will not be tolerated. Anyone found guilty will be subject to suspension

Will public outrage force Stan Burton to resign? I doubt it; I suspect he has made up his mind to serve out his term, regardless of what would be best for the association. While Mr. Burton may choose to go out on his own terms, one has to wonder about the remainder of the executive. They have apparently chosen inaction rather than taking a stand on principles that seem obvious to the rest of us. How will they be able to lead the KMHA once Mr. Burton steps aside?

To share your thoughts about the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association,
problems in amateur sport, leadership, or any other aspect of this
issue with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, click on "Comments" (below).

December 22, 2007

Kamloops Daily News Sports Editor Greg Drinnan made a comment recently that caught my attention, in his follow-up story (reproduced on his blog here) regarding the ongoing saga of underage drinking at the home of Kamloops Minor Hockey Association President Stan Burton, and the related mistreatment of whistle-blowers Ladd and Monica Malosk (emphasis my own):

According to the KMHA’s website, from which its bylaws recently disappeared, its second vice-president is Kelly Brandt. Brandt is a friend of the Maloskis and was in their home the evening of the party. She has since removed herself from the appeal committee.

Hamilton was appointed the committee’s chairman at a Nov. 26 board meeting. He is the KMHA’s midget director. It was a midget team that held the party in the home of the KMHA president.

And around and around it goes.

In addition to Mr. Drinnan's implication that the apparent conflicts of interest at the KMHA might adversely affect the both Maloskis and the overall handling of the affair, the reference to the removal from the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association web site of the association's bylaws piqued my interest.

To share your thoughts about the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association,
problems in amateur sport, teenage drinking, conflicts of interest, whistle-blower mistreatment, or any other aspect of this
issue with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, click on "Comments" (below). If you have a more recent version of the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association bylaws, email me here.

Now, when I personally am looking for an update on a local story, the first place I typically look online is
either at the CFJC-TV web site or at the Radio NL web site. Neither location provides a lot of information, often just a couple of sentences, but sometimes it's enough to at least temporarily satisfy the news jones.

Nevertheless, it is obvious that a CHBC priority is to develop a comprehensive online strategy, and this is no doubt a result of CanWest's Internet focus, as per that company's 2006 Annual Information Form (emphasis my own):

Our online and new media strategy is to continue to build our strong internet presence in order to leverage our editorial content across multiple media, provide integrated solutions to our advertisers and to cross-promote our publications, broadcasting and internet operations. We intend to capitalize upon the promotional and editorial capabilities of our integrated newspaper and video production in order to create Canada’s leading network of local content websites. The internet is complementary to our existing businesses and a significant potential source of new revenue.

In fact, CanWest's 2007 Annual Report claims that the company has managed to increase the volume of unique visitors to its online web sites by 30% over the previous year. That kind of growth doesn't happen by accident.

The elements of the CHBC web site that most interest me include:

The widespread use of video news stories. Many of the video news stories appear to have been lifted straight off the station's news broadcasts (which seems like a no-brainer), but for some reason many local TV stations have difficulty pulling the trigger when it comes to streaming their own video content online.

Once you've found a video story of interest, you can actually send a link to the story to a friend. This is a great feature that delivers real value to the media consumer, but it also generates more traffic to www.chbcnews.ca site when friends follow links back to stories at the web site. Unfortunately the "Send Story" function is paired up with a "Print Story" feature, which is at odds with video streaming both conceptually and in practice.

CHBC provides a virtual tour of the station, including 360° images of every room. Essential? No. Cool? Absolutely!

The volume of information available. Visitors really have an opportunity to hang out and get lost. Thank goodness for the virtual tour map so we can find our way out again!

Now, while CHBC has developed an engaging online presence for media consumers, much like CFJC-TV it doesn't appear the station is doing much with respect standalone banner or video advertising online. I suspect that for the moment CHBC is content to draw a growing online to its web site, but at some point it will need to exploit all those eyeballs; it's one thing to build a great web site, but something else again to make that web site profitable.

So, here is the comparison. As you can see the display format differs somewhat from the Radio comparison, it will probably change again when I publish the newspaper comparison (coming soon).

December 14, 2007

Like the media in many other cities across North America, some of the newspapers and broadcasters in Kamloops are evolving their online presence in an attempt to attract eyeballs (retain and grow their customer base) and hopefully exploit a combination of media channels to better achieve their organizational goals.

In many markets (and to a limited degree here in Kamloops), media convergence is transpiring online.
Why? Because the Internet is an equalizer. It potentially empowers radio and newspapers with audio and video capabilities, provides TV stations the opportunity to produce in-depth background, enables every kind of media with the opportunity to publish breaking or developing news stories, engages media consumers with an opportunity to provide feedback and maybe develop brand loyalty, and is ultimately accessed through a powerful but unpredictable mix of endpoints including mobile, anchored (like desktops at the office or in the den), and virtual (as in feed aggregators). This combination of characteristics represents a great opportunity for traditional media to re-engage customers and advertisers, but at times also seems to handcuff some organizations.

I've been tracking local media outlets for several months now, and during that time some of them have made some major changes to their online presence. Over the next few days I will publish the remainder of this information, but for now please consider the table below, which compares local radio broadcasters.

None of the radio broadcasters in Kamloops have really made a serious effort to get out in front of the pack with respect to advertising or breaking down the traditional boundaries that constrain this medium. CIFM scores on this un-scientific comparison according to the data points I was tracking, but to be honest my personal favorite online radio web sites in Kamloops are Radio NL and CFBX. I frequently turn to Radio NL to read the station's brief updates about local news stories when I can't wait to read the morning paper. CFBX on the other hand was a complete surprise; as a college radio station I wasn't actually expecting much, but in fact I discovered that Brant Zwicker and company have constructed a web presence that compares quite favorably to its corporate cousins.

My least favorite discovery was that while both The River and Country 103 provide online visitors with the ability to listen live to streaming real-time broadcasts, both stations first require interested online listeners to sign up for their loyalty programs. So, rather than encourage an infrequent listener like me to stick around, bookmark the site, come back again later, and maybe develop some loyalty to these stations, instead I just felt like closing the window. As it was I did sign up, but certainly would not have done this had I not been conducting this personal research project.

Anyways, here's the data with more to come over the next few days:

Radio NL

AM 610

The River

97.5 FM

Country 103 FM

CJKC-FM 103.1

98.3 FM

CIFM

B 100 FM

CKBX 100.1

The X 92.5

FM - CFBX

Core
Competencies

News

●Breaking news highlights

●Music news, movie reviews

○

○

●Link to CFJC news highlights

○

Sports Schedule & Scores

●

○

○

●Link to Kamloops Storm

○

○

Roads

●Link to DriveBC

○

○

●Link to DriveBC

●Link to DriveBC

○

Weather

●Link to Weather Office

●Link to Weather Office

●Link to Weather Office

●Link to Weather Office

●Link to Weather Office

○

Playlist

○

●1 week archive

●Listen to excerpt

●48 hour archive

●1 week archive

●Listen to excerpt

●1 week archive

●Listen to excerpt

●Multiple week archives including program name

Listen live

●

requires membership

requires membership

○

○

●

Display current song

○

●

●

○

○

○

Information

Music charts

○

●

●

●

○

●2002 to present

Program Schedule

●

●

●

○

○

●Includes links to many of the
syndicated program web sites

Program archive

○

○

○

●Leo Baggio phone call archive

●Cheryl & Steve archives (audio
& video)

○

Online Contests

○

○

○

○

○

○

Loyalty program

○

Loyal Listener Club

Country Club

CIFM Workforce

VIP Club

volunteers

Revenue

Sponsorships

○

●

●

●

●

-n/a-

Standalone Advertising

○

●

○

●

○

-n/a-

Real Estate

○

○

○

○

○

-n/a-

Directory of broadcast advertisers

○

○

○

○

○

-n/a-

Classifieds

○

○

○

○

○

-n/a-

Privacy Policy

●

○

○

○

○

-n/a-

Convergence & Consumer Engagement

Video

○

○

○

○

○

○

XML Feeds

○

○

○

○

○

○

Consumer Content

○

○

○

○

○

○

Comments

○

○

○

○

○

○

Save or Share Items of Interest

○

○

○

○

○

○

Interactive

●Question
of the Week

●Pick
the Hit

●Polls

○

●Online
requests

●Stan
& Hank on MySpace

●Online
requests,

●Test
a Product

●Forum

●Rich
MySpace presence w/ over 1000 friends

Other

○

●Good explanation of syndicated programs

●Good explanation of syndicated programs

●Rich link directories

●Blog

●Rich links directory

To share your thoughts about local media properties, or media convergence in Kamloops or elsewhere with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, click on "Comments" (below).

The association has treated Mr. Maloski and his wife Monica terribly since the two went to the media in October regarding an incident at the home of association President Stan Burton. Burton's son hosted a party that was attended by the 15-year-old hockey player for whom the Maloski's are guardians. Reports indicate that the boy became extremely intoxicated at the party, and so the Maloski's took him to the hospital. While there has been some dispute over blood alcohol methodologies since then, reports place the boy's blood alcohol content somewhere between 0.17 and 0.33.

Perhaps not unpredictably, the Kamloops Minor Hockey League Ass. closed ranks to protect its president, now matter how inappropriate his implicit endorsement of teen drinking by (among others) his own son and a number of his son's AAA rep teammates. Instead, the association started swinging the lumber at the Maloskis.

As Kamloops Daily News Sports Editor Greg Drinnan described in his excellent and ongoing coverage of the affair, in addition to disciplinary steps against Mr. Maloski the association also launched a massive email campaign against Mr. Maloski in which it claimed that the Kamloops teacher had been convicted of a completely unrelated criminal offense. As it turns out, the association's attempt to discredit the Kamloops school teacher was based on erroneous information, so now the local hockey organization has made a bad situation even worse.

The purpose of this recent public apology was to mitigate the prospect of legal action by Mr. Maloski. No apology would have been required if Kamloops Minor Hockey Ass. hadn't been so eager to tar and feather Mr. Maloski in the first place.

Mr. Maloski's crime was that he not only accepted BC Hockey's (British Columbia Amateur Hockey Association) Zero Tolerance Policy at face value, but also acted upon it. The policy specifically states (emphasis my own):

BC Hockey is unequivocally opposed to illegal drug and alcohol use and is sincere in its duty to uphold the laws of the land in which its members operate...

Zero tolerance means that behavior contrary to that above will not be tolerated...

Alcohol is not appropriate:

In dressing rooms or in public, non-licensed areas.

In team settings with minors in attendance.

In situations where minors are left unsupervised while adults attend “hospitality” type settings or where alcohol is not controlled by a server.

Consumption in buses or cars when traveling to and from an event.

By adults of a minor team when parents are not present.

Consumed by anyone at minor team parties hosted by other players, parents or team officials.

Myriad letters to the editor in both major Kamloops papers have expressed dismay at the behaviour of the Kamloops Minor Hockey Ass., but these letters also betray parental fear of retribution by an organization that demonstrates more tolerance for alcohol among youth than it does for dissent by concerned stakeholders.

This apology seems to indicate that only the prospect of legal action will make the Kamloops Minor Hockey Ass. change its stubborn ways and pull its own head out of wherever it has been recently planted.

UPDATE 03-Dec-07: Now word comes from BC Hockey that it won't get involved in the matter, but will instead stand mute while the Kamloops Minor Hockey Ass. discredits sport in the Tournament Capital. Who needs Michael Vick when we can set our own bad examples so close to home?

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October 10, 2007

I have been finding it increasingly difficult to avoid reading about the heartbreaking disappearance of Madeleine McCann. The darling 4 year old girl disappeared from a Portugal resort where she was vacationing with her parents and twin brothers; parents Kate and Gerry McCann are official suspects.

It's been difficult because I'm a news junky, and this story is all over the place. While other people read fiction, do crossword puzzles, or play cards, I read as many different papers a day as I can get my hands on. But while most aspects of media behaviour fascinate me, it's the media's own fascination with this kind of story makes me turn away.

The adage, "If it bleeds, it leads" may sound a little simplistic, but it fits this situation pretty accurately. News outlets can bank on the fact that the public will follow abduction stories, because they elicit fears of what might happen to our own children. And what do we do when we are afraid? We tune in to TV news and buy the morning paper, to become better armed with the information that will help us protect our own loved ones.

The problem is that while we may feel better informed about abductions (and so take steps to ensure that our own children never play unsupervised and never have an unscripted moment), the chances that anyone will ever attempt to abduct our own children is actually very small.

The Abduction of Children by Strangers in Canada: Nature and Scope, a 2003 study published on the federal government's Our Missing Children web site, indicates that statistics from the Missing Children's Registry somewhat misrepresent the true number of abductions by strangers or acquaintances (essentially, abductions by someone who is not a parent). While the registry indicates eighty-three such abductions between 2000 and 2001 in Canada, there were, "... surprisingly quite a few technical errors which contributed to the inflated number of reported stranger abductions." The actual number of stranger/acquaintance abductions during those two years? Five. Sadly, four of those five children were killed by their abductors. Still, no matter how horrible the circumstances, that is an average of two deaths per year across all of Canada as a result of an abduction by a stranger or acquaintance.

We all worry about child abductions, but aside from being vigilant and educating our children, there may be little we can do to protect them from such a tragedy. However, most parents spend much more time fretting about improbable abductions than they do about the thing that really is killing our children on a much more consistent and avoidable basis: traffic accidents.

Safe Kids Canada reports that every year more than seventy Canadian children die in car crashes (emphasis my own):

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death and serious injury to children of all ages, but those age 4 to 9 are currently the most vulnerable. Canadian data shows that the death rate from car crashes has dropped in all other age groups, but not for children in this age range.

Data also tells us that the majority of Canadian children age 4 to 9 are riding in seat belts, which puts them at risk for serious injuries in a crash. Seat belts are designed to fit adult proportions; children generally don’t reach the right size for a seat belt until at least age 9, often older.

Children who are too small for seat belts run the risk of what doctors call “seat belt syndrome” in the event of a crash. This refers to the range of serious injuries that happen to the internal organs and spine when a seat belt doesn’t fit properly.

The risks of serious injury and death can be significantly reduced by use of a booster seat, a simple safety device that ensures a seat belt fits a child correctly. Unfortunately, our research shows that [only] 28 per cent of Canadian parents of children age 4 to 9 say they are using booster seats for their children. Most parents think that their children are too big or too old for booster seats, but they are not.

What's the matter with us? We allow the media to play on our fears and transfix us with stories about abductions over which we have
absolutely no control, but we simultaneously choose to ignore that over which we have
complete control, namely the interior of our vehicles! Less than a third of parents are using booster seats for children who require them, and our children are needlessly dieing as a result. Surveys have also found that even when appropriate child safety devices are employed, they are often used improperly.

Hopefully that will change. Ontario recently moved to make child car seats and booster seats mandatory; proper use of these devices, "... can reduce the risk of serious injury or death by as much as 71 per cent". Beginning next summer, BC will have similar rules in place.

Our provincial governments are doing the right thing by regulating our behaviour. But parents, given the risk they otherwise face, shouldn't we be taking the time to protect our children by learning how to install child safety seats? Shouldn't we also make sure that our children never travel unless they're seated in appropriate devices that have properly installed?

Next time you start to watch, read, or listen to an update about Madeleine McCann, put down the paper, or turn off the radio or TV. Don't be the parent who survives an accident, only to live with the guilt of knowing that they didn't help their child survive. Instead, take control of your own child's safety; go buy your kid a car seat or a booster seat, or have a look at the one they already use. Is it tethered at the back? Is it belted in so tight that it's hard to move side-to-side? If you're uncertain or need some help, call your local fire department. I'm a Seatbelt Nazi... you should consider becoming one too.

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YouTube videos of the incident, which caught the three masked Sûreté officers as they were confronted by legitimate protesters including Dave Coles, president of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union. One of the undercover officers carried a rock in his hand, and the fear expressed by Mr. Coles and to which Ms. Bass alluded is that the officers were more than infiltrating the protest, that they were actually planted to act as agents provocateurs to instigate a violent protest.

Professional protesters have widely seized upon the incident as proof that evil-doing security forces, rather than hooligan members of their own protest coalitions - like the black bloc - were behind the Battle of Seattle that erupted at the World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting in 1999, the violence that threatened Western Australia Premier Richard Court and disrupted delegates to the 2000 World Economic Forum in MelbourneAustralia, and the fatal protests of the 2001 G8 Summit in GenoaItaly, during which anarchist Carlo Giuliani was killed while attacking police.

Ms. Bass, never one to avoid an opportunity for melodrama, drew a straight line between the Montebello incident and the prime minister, then made an astounding leap of logic to suggest that Mr. Harper actually considers Canadians to be the enemy.

Ms. Bass is nothing if not passionate; her columns often take aim at the powerful and "sinister" forces of both corporate and political establishments that victimize pretty well everybody with some regularity. However Ms. Bass conveniently missed the fact that while the RCMP organized security for the event, la Sûreté is a Quebec provincial police force that does not report to the mounties. Even if something untoward had transpired, the conclusion that any Canadian prime minister would consider Canadians to be the enemy is absolutely ridiculous. Politicians seldom act the way we would like (i.e. Pierre Trudeau giving Salmon Arm the finger), or share our personal philosophies, but we typically don't need to look any farther afield than our next of kin to discover that kind of difference.

Of course when I read her column, I had the benefit of the la Sûreté explanation of the incident, which follows in part (emphasis my own):

... the three people in question were indeed Sûreté du Québec police officers performing their duties. They had the mandate to locate and identify non-peaceful demonstrators in order to prevent excesses. They therefore joined a group of demonstrators that contained extremist elements. Those elements identified our police officers, who could not pursue their mandate. It was when leaving that group that they found themselves in a group of peaceful demonstrators. They then asked the police officers assigned to crowd control to leave the premises. Since those officers did not recognize them, they wrestled the Sûreté du Québec officers to the ground and handcuffed them in order to take them aside to confirm their identity. That intervention was never considered or presented by the Sûreté du Québec as an arrest. Furthermore, at no time did the officers in question engage in provocation or incite anyone to commit violent acts.

So despite the rhetoric, we have a plausible account of the videos published to date, which is neither "sinister" nor oppressive. Of course plausible explanations should never get in the way of a good socialist rant, and this specific incident at Montebello is just the cherry on the cake for socialists and anarchists and anti-capitalists, who have themselves in a right lather over the possibility of more trade and integration between Canada, the US, and Mexico.

But the fact is that ordinary Canadians like trade, which is why we voted Brian Mulroney's Progressive Conservatives to a 43-seat majority in 1989, after a hard-fought federal election that turned specifically on the question of free trade (I voted Liberal). NAFTA has enabled tremendous economic growth, including growth in cross-border services, merchandise, agriculture, and investment, as well as more than 125% net new job growth since NAFTA was implemented. That's why Ken Georgetti and the Canadian Labour Congress changed course in 2004 to embrace the reality of free trade - and the benefits it has brought us - although they have tacked back somewhat since then under withering criticism from Buzz Hargrove, et al.

Mr. Georgetti recognized that the labour movement needed to accept change. Change often creates fear however, hence the resistance to the SPP. Meanwhile the SPP is working to advance benign goals that should illicit relief rather than fear. Progress to date includes:

a North American Plan for Avian and Pandemic Influenza;

a Regulatory Cooperation Framework;

an Intellectual Property Action Strategy; and

a Trilateral Agreement for Cooperation in Energy Science and Technology

Harper, Bush and Calderón have asked their ministers to focus on five different priorities for next year's summit, including:

Enhancing the Global Competitiveness of North America (e.g. develop regulatory approaches that are compatible across NAFTA borders, while maintaining high standards of health, safety and environmental protection)

Sustainable Energy and the Environment (e.g. cooperation on national auto fuel efficiency standards, share information and experience and cooperate in efforts to achieve comparableemission measurement, reporting and verification, in order to develop publicly available national emissions inventories. This exchange would include sharing of emissions information on, for example, NOx, SOx, CO2, VOCs, NH3, Hg and particulates)

Smart and Secure Borders (e.g. cooperate in law enforcement, screening and facilitation of legitimate trade and travellers across NAFTA borders, research the prospect of in some cases screening travellers and commerce before they enter North America)

Emergency Management and Preparedness (e.g. develop procedures for managing the movement of goods and people across shared borders during and following an emergency)

The protests in Montebello can help Canadian society exercise the value of these initiatives, but the debate ceases to be constructive when the left cranks up the rhetoric with ridiculous fear mongering about "sinister" intentions among our collective leaders. Our leaders do a pretty good job of being obtuse, arrogant, dense, misdirected, and unfocused, but "sinister"? That's a stretch.

Civil disobedience is an essential undertaking in a free and democratic society; protest is something we must exercise to ensure we retain it. However growing the economy, maintaining civil order, and protecting private property are also responsibilities, albeit of the state rather than the individual. Meetings between our national leaders and the captains of industry are not "sinister", they are a requirement of our growing and evolving economies.

Given the violent outcomes at other world summits over the past decade, infiltrating these large and potentially violent protests is not "sinister" either, even if the majority of protesters are raging grannies or middle-aged union leaders. The violence that occurred at festivals throughout the Thompson-Okanagan during the eighties and at many other summertime events should remind us all that good people in large crowds can turn nasty very quickly, even in the absence of premeditated intent. But at large protests where tempers run high and there is a history of violence, infiltrating to identify and contain those who engage in criminal behaviour is a reasonable and appropriate tactic, just like infiltrating any other criminal activity is an appropriate law enforcement action.

As Ms. Bass so eloquently wrote, "we are the people" and they are the government. Let's just not go confusing ourselves with enemies or victims, and governments that govern with sinister intent, all right?

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August 18, 2007

As competition for the Kamloops Blazers heats up, Tom Gaglardi is starting to play the kind of two-way game that Kamloops hockey fans haven't seen in a long time. They say that success starts at the top, and if so let's hope that the combination of Mr. Gaglardi's off-ice grit and ability to lead from the front will translate into a winning on-ice formula as well.

Mr. Gaglardi - grandson of our former mayor and MLA Phil Gaglardi - started tongues wagging last year when the River City Hockey group he leads approached the Blazers board with an offer to buy. The bid never actually saw the light of day however, as the group was out-maneuvered by the board of the Kamloops Blazers Sports Society, which is opposed to taking the club private.

Things have changed this summer however, as River City Hockey Inc. returned to the table with a fresh offensive flair and a willingness to battle it out in the corners.

First, Jarome Iginla officially joined the venture; in combination with fellow alumni Shane Doan, Darryl Sydor, and Mark Recchi, Mr. Iginla introduces a strong emotional element to this offer that makes it difficult for fans to avoid taking sides. The former Blazers collectively own a 40% River City Hockey stake, while Mr. Gaglardi - another stellar Kamloops son in his own right (in spirit, if not in fact) - owns the remaining 60%. Misters Gaglardi and Recchi have also both purchased shares in Kamloops Blazers Holdings Ltd. since last summer, which gives them a seat at the table they didn't have before.

With all the traffic in front of the net, Mr. Gaglardi has stepped his game up a notch. It started with a camera-friendly skate at the Ice Box with Mark Recchi, who granted an extensive interview to Larry Read of CFJC-TV. Then this morning the front page of the Kamloops Daily News reported that Northland Properties Corporation is actively pursuing plans to develop a couple of properties in Aberdeen, including a four-star hotel. The private company, which Mr. Gaglardi leads as president, owns and operates a variety of hospitality chains including Sandman Hotels, Inns and Suites, Denny's Canada, and Moxie's Classic Grill. The News reported that the overall value of the developments could total $30 million.

Some detractors of the River City bid have questioned whether the group will eventually move the franchise from the city. However by stepping up with a net new $30 million hospitality investment in addition to his pursuit of the Blazers, Mr. Gaglardi has demonstrated a stronger commitment to this community than anyone could have imagined. The nature and timing of his announcement betrays a well-planned strategy, the kind of strategy that is focused on winning rather than just being in the game. For those who don't know him personally (as I don't), we can only assess Mr. Gaglardi based upon his actions. So far, his actions are telling me that he has a sharp mind and that he is an excellent communicator; that's the kind of person I want interested and invested in this city.

If River City Hockey does come away with the prize, this investment announcement will most certainly be the assist that set up the winning goal. For those who are keeping score, that will amount to one scrap fought (in the BC Supreme Court), one assist made (Northland's Aberdeen property developments), and one goal scored (buying the Blazers) in a single game. If he can score a Gordie Howe hat trick off the ice, just think what Mr. Gaglardi and company could do with our Blazers on the ice.

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August 02, 2007

When I returned to Kamloops in 1996, it was unusual for an information technology company to set up shop here. High speed Internet access was very expensive, and for the most, very unavailable in residential neighbourhoods. At the time, and many times since, I've joked with technology associates in larger centers that I moved back to Kamloops, "... because it's the navel of the I.T universe," leaving it up to their imaginations as to exactly what kind of navel I had in mind.

Well,it turns out that I was closer to the truth than I thought. Two recent stories, appearing respectively in the July 21 and August 1 editions of the Vancouver Sun and the National Post, relate that a location west of Kamloops up the Deadman Valley is in fact the Centre of the Universe.

If one is lucky, one might might occasionally hear the "sound of singing" at the location; that's a dead give-away for the universal nexus.

It's a fascinating story, which I would love to believe. Do any of you readers know enough about Tibetan beliefs to comment on whether this is the real thing or just an uncorroborated filler for slow news days? Please share your information or opinion with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers; just click on "Comments" (below).

The Canadian Press story, which appears to have been written by a summer intern who erroneously rehashed content from a similar story in April, at which time the Prime Minister originally announced his intention to appoint Brown upon Liberal Senator Dan Hays anticipated June retirement. The story today garnered all of six column inches on page seven of the daily.

So in the absence of information from local media sources, let's review some brief background about Mr. Brown's appointment.

Mr. Brown will be the second elected senator in Canadian history. It's been 17 years since Brian Mulroney appointed Stan Waters to the Senate in 1990. Unfortunately he served only a year before his death of brain cancer in 1991.

Harper's move is an indication that 1). he is serious about senate reform, and 2). he is serious about beating his competition like a rented mule with the issue before the next writ is dropped. Whether or not the Canadian people care about the Senate as much as Harper believes is another matter, but nevertheless it is a long-standing hobby-horse of western alienation which seems to finally be receiving some action instead of hot air. Oddly, Stephane Dione wandered into the discussion as though he had never read a briefing note.

First Dion insulted the Albertans that elected Brown by saying he was, "not sure the prime minister chose the best person." Second, he questioned how democratic Brown's election had been. This is the same Bert Brown who was elected with 312,041 votes. How many is 312,041? That's more than seven times as many votes as were polled by all candidates from all parties in Dion's riding in 2006. Or, as Lorne Gunter wrote today, 312,041 is almost 100,000 more votes than all federal Liberal candidates in Alberta put together polled in that same election.

One would think that the Daily News could muster more than a shallow grave for this story, which has significant implications throughout Canada, but in particular here in the West.

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